This invention relates to a process for the formation of ceramic bricks and more particularly for the formation of freestanding sintered bricks of lithium carbonate.
Lithium containing ceramics, such as LiAlO.sub.2, are generally used as a tritium breeder material in a breeder blanket in nuclear fusion technology. Lithium nuclei are split by high energy neutrons yielding tritium, an isotope of hydrogen. A spatially uniform distribution of lithium isotopes reduces the complexity of many mathematical calculations concerning the dispersion of neutrons and the production of tritium. In addition, such ceramics can be used as neutron absorbing material where appropriate. Lithium carbonate is the most readily available lithium-containing ceramic. In the past, such lithium containing ceramics have been used in particle form or packed in various containers. The cost involved in the utilization of the ceramics in particle form is significant and in particle form the ceramic can have a fairly inefficient packing or density. It is essential that breeder materials be distributed as uniformly as possible, thereby requiring minimal variations in packing, if discrete particles are used, a factor which can vary significantly in individual applications. If bricks are used, the bricks may not exhibit any striations or other disruptive imperfections and variations in content. In addition, when forming the bricks, the green strength must be sufficient to permit handling of the green brick without a loss of integrity.